Employee Health Insurance in the UAE: What Employers Must Provide
Last checked: 6 November 2026. We re-check fees, deadlines and rules every quarter.
If you employ people in the UAE, health insurance is no longer a perk you can choose to offer. In Dubai and Abu Dhabi the law makes the employer responsible for it, and since 1 January 2025 a federal rule ties the residence permits of private sector workers to an active policy. For a new company, that means the insurance has to be planned and paid for before the first visa is processed, not after.
This guide sets out what the Dubai law and the UAE government portal say, how the rule differs between emirates, what a basic policy looks like, and what a founder should budget and confirm with the authorities.
Key takeaways
- Under Dubai Law No. 11 of 2013, the employer must enrol its employees and pay the cost. The cost cannot be charged to the employee.
- The Dubai law applies to free zones as well as the mainland, so a free zone company with staff in Dubai is not outside it.
- In Abu Dhabi, employers and sponsors must cover the employee plus one spouse and up to three children under 18.
- Since 1 January 2025 the UAE government says employers must buy a health insurance policy before applying for the issue or renewal of a residence permit.
- The published basic package costs AED 320 per year, covers ages 1 to 64, and the policy runs for two years.
- Fines under the Dubai law run from AED 500 to AED 150,000 per violation, so a lapsed policy is a cost risk as well as a visa risk.
The short answer
Yes, an employer in Dubai or Abu Dhabi has to provide health insurance for its employees. In Dubai the employer carries the cost. Across the private sector, a valid policy is now a condition for issuing or renewing a residence permit. What you still need to confirm is how the rule applies in your emirate, to your owners and to dependants, because the sources describe those points differently.
| Item | What the official sources say |
|---|---|
| Dubai | Employer must enrol employees and bear the cost (Law No. 11 of 2013) |
| Abu Dhabi | Employer or sponsor covers the employee and family: one spouse and three children under 18 |
| Residence permits | Policy required to apply for issue or renewal, from 1 January 2025 |
| Basic package | AED 320 per year, ages 1 to 64, two-year policy |
| Dubai fines | AED 500 to AED 150,000 per violation, doubled for repeats within a year |
| Free zones | Covered by the Dubai law, which names free zones such as DIFC |
What the Dubai law requires of employers
Dubai Law No. 11 of 2013 on health insurance in the Emirate of Dubai is the main legal source for employers there. It was issued on 24 November 2013 and gave employers a one-year window to comply once it applied to them. The text on the Dubai legislation portal sets out these duties for an employer:
- enrol its employees in health insurance;
- bear the cost of enrolling them, and not charge that cost to the employees;
- keep the insurance valid for the whole period of service;
- bear the cost of emergency treatment for any employee who is not insured;
- provide a health insurance card; and
- produce a health insurance policy when issuing or renewing residence permits.
The law sets a minimum level of cover, which it calls Basic Coverage, and says the benefits of an employer’s policy must be no less than that. The benefits themselves are prescribed in separate resolutions, so the law does not state a monetary limit. Check the current resolution, or ask your insurer to confirm in writing that the plan meets the Basic Coverage required by the Dubai Health Authority.
One point often gets missed. The law says the employer bears the cost and does not charge it to the beneficiaries. In practice that means you should not build a premium deduction into an employee’s salary in Dubai.
Dependants: employer duty or sponsor duty?
The Dubai law treats family members differently from employees. An employer may provide supplementary cover for an employee’s family, but the duty to insure resident dependants falls on the sponsor. The UAE government portal describes it the same way: in Dubai employers must cover their employees, and sponsors must arrange cover for their resident dependants.
Abu Dhabi is stricter. The portal says employers and sponsors there are responsible for insurance for their employees and their families, defined as one spouse and three children under 18. If you hire in Abu Dhabi, build the cost of that wider cover into your offers.
For a founder sponsoring a family member, our guide to the UAE family visa explains the sponsorship side and where insurance fits.
The federal rule from 1 January 2025
The UAE government portal states that from 1 January 2025, employers are required to purchase a health insurance policy as a prerequisite for applying for the issue or renewal of residence permits. It describes the rule for private sector workers and domestic workers.
The portal also says the requirement is already mandatory in Abu Dhabi and Dubai and will extend to private sector workers in Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah. It gives no date for the Northern Emirates. Some commentary reports that the extension has already taken effect, so do not rely on either reading. Ask the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, or the typing center handling your visa, whether the requirement applies to your emirate on the day you apply.
The portal adds that policies are valid for two years, that dependants can access the same benefits and pricing as the worker, and that the premium for the second year can be refunded if the visa is cancelled. Those details matter when you plan visa quotas and staff turnover. Our guide to the company visa quota and establishment card shows how the number of visas you can use is set.
What a basic policy costs and covers
The government portal publishes a basic insurance package priced at AED 320 per year. It applies to workers aged 1 to 64, and a person over 64 needs a medical disclosure form. The portal says chronic illness has no waiting period under this package.
A basic package is built to meet the legal minimum, not to be a good benefit. Co-payments and annual caps are low, so a worker with a serious claim can still face large costs. Many employers therefore buy a fuller group plan and treat the basic package as the floor.
| Option | Who it suits | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Basic package at AED 320 a year | Small teams on tight budgets, mainly to meet the permit rule | Low caps and co-payments; check what it excludes |
| Fuller group plan | Companies competing for staff or with family cover duties | Higher premium, network limits, annual renewal pricing |
| Abu Dhabi plan with family cover | Employers in Abu Dhabi | Cover for one spouse and three children under 18 |
We do not quote group plan prices here because they depend on age, headcount, network and claims history. Get at least two written quotes that name the plan, the network and the annual limit.
Free zone companies and owners
The Dubai law applies to special development zones and free zones, and names the Dubai International Financial Centre as an example. A free zone company with employees working in Dubai therefore sits inside the same employer duties as a mainland company. Other free zones set their own onboarding steps, so check what your zone asks for when it issues visas.
Owners are a separate question. An investor or partner visa is still a residence permit, and the portal ties residence permit issue and renewal to a policy. Whether the company or the owner arranges that policy depends on the route. Our guide to residence visas for company owners covers the visa routes, and you should confirm the insurance step with your zone or the authority before you pay.
How to set it up for a new company
- Confirm your visa quota and how many people you plan to hire in the first year.
- Decide which emirate each employee will be based in, because the rule differs between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
- Ask for two or three written quotes. Check the plan meets the legal minimum for that emirate.
- Buy the policy before you submit the visa application, since the application needs proof of cover.
- Give each employee the health insurance card and keep a copy in their file.
- Diary the renewal date. Our annual compliance checklist shows where insurance renewal sits next to your license and tax dates.
If you are hiring your first person, our guide to hiring your first employee in the UAE walks through the visa, contract and payroll steps in order.
What it costs you if you get it wrong
The Dubai law sets fines of at least AED 500 and at most AED 150,000, with the exact amounts set by an Executive Council resolution. A repeat offense within a year doubles the fine, up to AED 500,000. The Dubai Health Authority may also issue a notice, suspend activities for up to two years, or revoke authorization. These penalties are in the law, so treat a missed renewal as a real cost.
The law also says an employer must pay for emergency treatment for any employee who has no insurance. One uninsured emergency can cost more than a year of premiums for the whole team.
Mistakes to avoid
- Deducting the premium from an employee’s salary in Dubai.
- Applying for a visa before the policy is in place.
- Assuming the Northern Emirates rule has no effect on you without checking the current position.
- Choosing a plan on price alone and finding later that it does not meet the legal minimum.
- Forgetting the renewal date, so that cover lapses while a visa renewal is pending.
- Treating family cover as optional in Abu Dhabi.
Budgeting for it
Treat insurance as part of the cost of every hire, next to the visa fees and the salary. Hiring costs are higher than the salary on the offer letter, and our sister site explains how founders should budget them in its guide to mandatory health insurance across the emirates. Check the figures it quotes against the government sources above before you use them in a budget, because the rules and premiums change.
For wider company setup guidance, see the sister site CompanyFormationInUAE, and see our own outsourced HR services if you want someone to manage the paperwork.
How EZONE helps
EZONE sets up your company and your license, plans the visa quota, and connects you with insurers for quotes. We check the current rule for your emirate at the time of your application, because the position has changed in recent years. Tell us where your staff will work and how many people you plan to hire, and we will give you a written plan and cost estimate. You can also read how our business setup consultants work with clients.
Sources: the Dubai legislation portal text of Law No. 11 of 2013 and the UAE government portal page on getting health insurance.
Frequently Asked Questions
In Dubai and Abu Dhabi employers must provide it, and the UAE government says that from 1 January 2025 employers must buy a policy before applying for the issue or renewal of residence permits. The portal says the requirement extends to the Northern Emirates, with no date given, so confirm the position for your emirate.
The employer. Dubai Law No. 11 of 2013 says the employer bears the cost of enrolling its employees and does not charge that cost to them.
In Dubai the duty to insure resident dependants falls on the sponsor, although an employer may offer supplementary cover. In Abu Dhabi, employers and sponsors are responsible for the employee and family, defined as one spouse and three children under 18.
The UAE government portal publishes a basic package at AED 320 per year for ages 1 to 64, on a two-year policy. Fuller group plans cost more and depend on age, headcount and network, so get written quotes.
The Dubai law applies to special development zones and free zones, naming the Dubai International Financial Centre as an example. Free zone companies with staff in Dubai should plan for the same employer duties and check the steps their zone requires.
The law sets fines from AED 500 to AED 150,000 per violation, doubled for a repeat within a year, and the Dubai Health Authority can also suspend activities or revoke authorization. The employer must also pay for emergency treatment of any uninsured employee.
